


under the midnight shield

by blackkat



Series: Mace Windu prompts [6]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Marriage of Convenience
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:35:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24971653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackkat/pseuds/blackkat
Summary: “Sure about this, vod?” Fox asks, almost soundless, as he waves Thorn back.“No,” Cody says, and holds out his hand.Silently, Fox drops both of the hastily-bought bands of gold into his palm, and Cody has the brief, hilarious, maybe faintly hysterical thought that this technically makes Fox his ringbearer.
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody/Mace Windu
Series: Mace Windu prompts [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1941517
Comments: 27
Kudos: 748
Collections: Mace Windu Rare Pairs, Star Wars Alternate Universes





	under the midnight shield

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt: I was reading through some of my favorite bits of HtH, and I got to thinking about the circumstances that led to Mace/Cody and, could the reverse happen? Like, could a clone marry someone to make a legal loophole that allows their spouse somekinda immunity from third parties or *handwave* something, because clones are technically republic property?

Cody marches into the block of holding cells with his head up, his back perfectly straight. He doesn’t look at Fox, walking next to him, even though he’s grateful for the steady familiarity. Doesn’t waver, doesn’t falter, just keeps his pace and moves like he expects everyone else in the building to get out of his way.

“Sure about this, vod?” Fox asks, almost soundless, as he waves Thorn back.

“No,” Cody says, and holds out his hand.

Silently, Fox drops both of the hastily-bought bands of gold into his palm, and Cody has the brief, hilarious, maybe faintly hysterical thought that this technically makes Fox his ringbearer.

“Papers?” he asks quietly.

“Filed and backdated. No one will know, no matter how closely they're looking,” Fox answers, and Cody realizes, belatedly, that this is already done. All the hard parts have already been accomplished. As he has left to do is window-dressing.

He has a choice, technically. Anakin is speaking with the Chancellor, and Ponds is shaking Coruscant’s underbelly with all of Lightning Squadron to see what falls out. Cody caught wind of a hastily scheduled execution, mostly because Fox is a good vod who was trying to get word to Obi-Wan, and Cody _could_ simply pass the message on. But Obi-Wan is off-world while the 212th is on leave, and Anakin is only a Knight, and of the rest of the Council Shaak Ti is the only one Cody could contact and she was neck-deep in dealing with the fallout of the Master of the Order being framed for _murder_.

The Jedi can do a hell of a lot of things, with their Senate-granted powers. Execute a whole meeting full of senators isn't one of those things, and the backlash is _massive_.

Still. Colt would do this, if Cody asked. Or Wolffe, probably. Ponds would drop his investigation in a heartbeat to try it. Even Fox would be willing, if Cody refused. But Cody is the one who heard the plans, heard the Chancellor talk about doing away with a traitor before he could cause more problems, and Cody is the one who came up with this insane, risky, ridiculous plan, so he’s not about to ask his brothers to step in.

Cody's the one with the reputation of having a cool head, though, of never setting a foot out of line. Alpha-17 once told him that following the rules all the time made it more impactful when he broke them, and Cody's sure as hell about to put that to the test.

“Luck, vod,” Fox murmurs, and reaches out, thumping a gauntlet against Cody's shoulder. No armor, but a dress uniform instead, hastily pulled on in the speeder on the way here, and Cody gives the too-tight collar one las, futile tug, breathes in, and nods sharply.

“Open the door,” he says, and Fox steps away, keying open the heavy door.

It’s bright, inside. The kind of bright that hurts, too sterile and white, and Cody hides a grimace, stepping in. Fox steps into the doorway, a Human barrier, a witness, but Cody doesn’t look back at him. Cody meets the dark eyes that rise to fix on him, and he has to swallow before he can manage to say, “Mace.”

If High General Jedi Master Mace Windu objects to being called by his first name, it doesn’t show. His face is peaceful, calm, even though his hands are bound to the chair he’s sitting in and his robes are still splattered with blood. “Commander Cody,” he returns.

Cody tilts his head, and Fox slips past him, pulling his keys from his belt. Mace's eyes narrow faintly, but he makes no fast moves as Fox unchains his hands, then his feet, and steps back.

“Sorry it took me so long to get here, Mace,” Cody says, calm, even. Feels himself settle, as he does, because he’s _seen_ Mace Windu on a battlefield. Not just the fighting, impressive as that is, but—he’s seen him get his men to safety before anything else, even when it puts him in direct danger. A man who values the lives of clones so highly, so determinedly, is worth saving. Cody _wants_ to save him. “No one called me.”

“No,” Mace says slowly, and he’s clearly trying to understand what’s happening, what Cody is leading towards, even though Cody doubts anyone who didn’t know him could tell. “I don’t suppose they would have.”

Cody takes a breath, takes a step. Subtly, carefully slides one of the rings over his own finger, and then offers up the other on his palm, and says mildly, “You weren’t wearing your ring.”

Mace's eyes flicker from the ring to Cody's face, and—

There's a brush. Light, like a hand on his shoulder in a crowd, a request. Cody doesn’t know how to answer it mentally, so he tips his chin, just slightly, and Mace's exhale is a faint sound in the hush.

 _Commander_ , Mace says, but his mouth isn't moving.

 _General,_ Cody thinks, and sees Mace's eyebrow rise just faintly. _I'm sorry about this. Please don’t court-martial me later_.

A surprise that isn't Cody's flickers, but as Mace rises to his feet, Cody doesn’t hesitate. He closes the space between them, hooks a hand around the back of Mace's neck, and pulls him down into a kiss.

It’s awkward with surprise, unfamiliar. Cody tenses, all too aware of surveillance, and—

Carefully, deliberately, Mace gentles it. He puts a hand on Cody's cheek, easing it a little, and something like relief shakes down Cody's spine, curls warm in his gut. Mace is playing along. That’s all Cody needs to save him.

“I'm sorry,” Mace says, as they break apart. Cody's fingers are digging into the back of his neck, but—it’s a tense situation. That probably just sells the act even more. “I was in the training salle this morning. I didn’t want it to be damaged.”

It takes a moment to realize he’s talking about the ring. Cody's breath trembles as it emerges, and it’s not just an act, the relief that makes him dizzy. He wraps his arms around Mace's neck, pulls him in, and feels Mace curl his arms around him in return, firm but gentle.

“You got accused of murder without me,” he says, knee-jerk humor he can't quite help.

There's a snort, low and equally amused. “Next time,” Mace says, “I’ll make sure to invite you to my dramatic arrest.”

“You’d better,” Cody says steadily. “I'm your husband.”

He hears the catch in Mace's breath as Mace gets it. Cody's technically Republic property, and so is anything he owns. Marriage isn't an ownership, but—there's room for interpretation.

If Mace is married to a clone, he belongs to the Republic. They can't just execute him without the Senate getting involved, rather than solely the Chancellor, and Cody _knows_ how long anything concerning the Senate takes. It’s a grey area in the law, with the potential for challenge, and it will hopefully buy them enough time to figure out who framed Mace and why.

“And I'm yours,” Mace says, steady, and—

It’s not much, but it’s enough to make Cody's next breath come just a little bit easier.


End file.
